Fiesta Hispana, enduring legacy

Ninfa Marie Garza, Jose R. Gonzalez and Rebecca “Becky” H. Jaramillo are “gone but not forgotten.” The beloved community leaders who passed away in 2012, 2003 and 2005, respectively, left a legacy that the Midwest has embraced unreservedly. Fiesta Hispana is enshrined as a treasured institution. The festival, scheduled this year for Sept. 14-16, inaugurates Hispanic Heritage Month. The annual observance celebrating the histories, cultures and contributions of people with roots in Mexico, Central and South America, the Caribbean and Spain date back half a century. Former President Lyndon Johnson enacted Public Law 90-498, establishing the week of Sept. 15 as National Hispanic Heritage Week in 1968. Twenty years later, President Ronald Reagan extended the commemorative event to a month. In 1988, Public Law 100-402 established Sept. 15 to Oct. 15 as National Hispanic Heritage Month. Fiesta Hispana Kansas City celebrates its 37th year. It has changed over time to accommodate ever-larger crowds. The venue since 1984 has been Barney Allis Plaza “in the heart of downtown Kansas City.” Before that, the popular Hispanic festival was held on the city’s acclaimed Westside where Garza, Gonzalez and Jaramillo organized the inaugural celebration in 1981. It’s not hard to imagine that the change in location and the festival’s popularity would please the founders immensely. But it probably wouldn’t surprise them. As evidenced in their many varied contributions to the community, Garza, Gonzalez and Jaramillo were extraordinarily forward-thinking, enterprising and ambitious champions of Hispanic causes. However, they’re probably best-known and most appreciated among the greater metropolitan community for founding the Greater Kansas City National Hispanic Heritage Committee and Fiesta Hispana. Dos Mundos, along with radio stations 1250 KYYS-AM, 1340 KDTD-AM and 1480 KCZZ-AM that make up Reyes Media Group, is a proud sponsor of Fiesta Hispana 2018. As we posted on the fiesta’s Facebook page, we will be the emcees on Friday, Sept. 14. We’re honored to participate in this favorite annual Hispanic cultural celebration, in part, as tribute to a trio of local civic heavyweights, Ninfa Garza, Jose Gonzalez and Becky Jaramillo, the fiesta’s visionary founders. Their legacy endures.We look forward to seeing you!

Nota bene, in the interest of full disclosure: Becky Jaramillo was my close personal friend and a longtime associate editor for Dos Mundos.